Explorerlover
Hi Guys
Does anyone have plans to build a "Gibson or ESP-esque" explorer. I have already started with the template off my explorer, but I just wanna make 100% sure of all the holes that need to be drilled etc etc. I want the template to be close to flawless as mahogany ain't cheap and I don;t want to make a mess of it. Also as this is my "custom" explorer, I thought that I'd move away from the classic TOM bridge and use something like a Schaller 456 bridge.
Current spec [ so far ]:
-Mahogany body
-Angled paddle neck : Purple heart & Ebony fretboard with 6130 dunlop frets with bone nut[ Warmoth ]
-Schaller 456 Bridge [ black ]
-Sperzel Locking tuners 3L & 3R [ Wanna try my own headstock design ]
-Schaller Straplocks
-Black Dome knobs [ 1 Vol , 1 Tone ]
-3 way selector switch
-Normal Jack plate position
-Pick ups.....Don;t know yet...gassing for the Seymour Duncan Blackouts but we'll see.
Finish: Natural Satin, it should look like a rifle stock after being treated with Birchwood Casey gunstock oil.
Also, does anyone know where to get "sexy looking" veneers? Just in case the mahogany doesn't have a nice grain to it.
Thanks
Explorerlover
Right, so this build is stunned a bit because of the lovely ZAR/USD fx rate...
Tell me I'm not the only one who can see this explorer body is different [I know it's because of the Gibson lawsuit] etc etc, but I just wanted to be sure.....Something is wrong with the "long horn"
MikeM
Isn't the top line supposed to flow? ?
Explorerlover
See what I mean...this thing doesn't look right
MikeM
Explorerlover
Thanks, now I can rest easy...just had a look at my template again and it looks like the Gibson...phew!!!
Gearhead
Question: are you going to go for the bolt-on like in the Warmoth picture? If I'm not mistaken the Gibson Explorer is et neck, but building it yourself you might go for neck-through-body and get some more sustain.
If I'm ever going to build one, it will also have cavities or a thickness step to make it lighter. I like the mahogany one that The Edge plays, but I'd hate to have an axe like that weighing on my shoulder for more than two songs...
Explorerlover
I was thinking of using the neckthrough Stewmac neck, and then slot in another piece of wood at the end where it'll be too short. Then for uniformity, I'll look for a sexy bookmatched veneer or something to go over. If I'm gonna do that, I might aswell rout some "tone chambers" aswell. I don;t mind a heavy guitar
AlanRatcliffe
I tend to think that a through-neck should be laminated for strength/stiffness, not a one piece like the Stewmac neck. Have a look at
Soul Mate Guitars - he'll make a neck to your specs as plain or as fancy as you want. Does good work.
Explorerlover
Sweet Jeebus..
They are soooo pretty...
Thanks for the link. ?
Gearhead
Now I'm confused. I seem to also recall that the original Gibson one also had a thickness step from the thicker centre piece to the thinner 'wings', but I don't know where I got that idea. I Googled it and came up with both uniform and stepped thickness pictures. What's original and what will you build / would you prefer?
AlanRatcliffe
You're thinking of the Firebird:
Gearhead
Ah thx that's it. ? How do you tell if you've got Korsakov? ☹
Explorerlover
This is the look I am going for.Based on the ESP lawsuit explorers which a company called Edwards
http://www.espguitars.co.jp/edwards/ex/E-EX-110D.html are making now. The headstock will be a different design which Doug at SoulMate is more than happy to help with.
AlanRatcliffe
Good idea. Those hockey stick style headstocks are not great for tuning.
Explorerlover
Ya....I was thinking more along the lines of a 3L 3R headstock.
That guy at soulmate make them look soooo good.
@ Alan, your partscaster has a Pao Ferro fretboard if I'm not mistaken? Are there big differences in using Pao Ferro and using Ebony for the fretboards?
AlanRatcliffe
Pao Ferro is IMO the best of all worlds - looks like rosewood, sounds like maple and feels like ebony.
Like maple, it's not quite as toppy as ebony, still bright, but the resonant frequency is a little lower and it's a bit less spikey sounding. I only like ebony boards on a fretless, hollow, or really dark sounding guitar.
Explorerlover
I see....I'm infatuated with the ebony on my ESP and it's because of the way it feels...Almost like a "black mirror"
AlanRatcliffe
I know what you mean, It's hard, but it's smooth and very fine pore structure, almost slinky feeling. Pao ferro is the same.
I gather you like the medium jumbo frets or lower then, not the railroad ties like the 6100 where you don't feel the fingerboard at all (I'm the same).
Explorerlover
You sir are correct....If I'm not mistaken, it's the 6130's "onwards/downwards" ???
